Asian Studies 230: Philosophy of Anime

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Rolvaag Library 305
St. Olaf College
Northfield, MN 55057

Subjects: Asian Conversations, Asian Studies, Chinese, Economics, Education, Family Studies, Japanese, Political Science, Psychology, Public Affairs Conversation, Public Health, Social Work, Social Work and Family Studies

What is anime?

Anime is a specific type of animation/illustration style that originates from Japan. It has been used as a medium to communicate a wide range of aspects in culture, philosophical thought, religious beliefs, and day-to-day life.

Where can I watch anime?

We have the assigned anime films for Asian 230 on Rolvaag Library's Course Reserves. Crunchyroll, Netflix, or Hulu also have a wide variety of anime films and television shows.

Anime News Network
A comprehensive resource for information on anime films and television series, as well as current news releases. This site also offers a vast review and rating system of different anime shows and source materials.
Crunchyroll
One of the largest streaming services for anime - it will allow for some viewing of films and television shows without an account, but with limited access. A subscription to the service will allow for full access to the website.

Katsudō Shashin (1907)

Katsudo Shashin (1907) - Early anime was illustrated on pieces of celluloid.

Relevant Books and Literature

Anime by Rayna Denison Anime: A Critical Introduction maps the genres that have thrived within Japanese animation culture, and shows how a wide range of commentators have made sense of anime through discussions of its generic landscape. From the battling robots that define the mecha genre through to Studio Ghibli's dominant genre-brand of plucky shojo (young girl) characters, this book charts the rise of anime as a globally significant category of animation. It further thinks through the differences between anime's local and global genres: from the less-considered niches like nichijo-kei (everyday style anime) through to the global popularity of science fiction anime, this book tackles the tensions between the markets and audiences for anime texts. Anime is consequently understood in this book as a complex cultural phenomenon: not simply a "genre," but as an always shifting and changing set of texts. Its inherent changeability makes anime an ideal contender for global dissemination, as it can be easily re-edited, translated and then newly understood as it moves through the world's animation markets. As such, Anime: A Critical Introduction explores anime through a range of debates that have emerged around its key film texts, through discussions of animation and violence, through debates about the cyborg and through the differences between local and global understandings of anime products. Anime: A Critical Introduction uses these debates to frame a different kind of understanding of anime, one rooted in contexts, rather than just texts. In this way, Anime: A Critical Introduction works to create a space in which we can rethink the meanings of anime as it travels around the world.
ISBN: 9781847884800
Publication Date: 2015-12-03
The Early Miyazaki by Raz Greenberg; Chris Pallant (Contribution by) Hayao Miyazaki's career in animation has made him famous as not only the greatest director of animated features in Japan, the man behind classics as My Neighbour Totoro (1988) and Spirited Away (2001), but also as one of the most influential animators in the world, providing inspiration for animators in Disney, Pixar, Aardman, and many other leading studios. However, the animated features directed by Miyazaki represent only a portion of his 50-year career. Hayao Miyazaki examines his earliest projects in detail, alongside the works of both Japanese and non-Japanese animators and comics artists that Miyazaki encountered throughout his early career, demonstrating how they all contributed to the familiar elements that made Miyazaki's own films respected and admired among both the Japanese and the global audience.
ISBN: 9781501335945
Publication Date: 2018-07-12
Manga and Anime Go to Hollywood by Northrop Davis The media industries in the United States and Japan are similar in much the same way different animal species are: while a horse and a kangaroo share maybe 95% of their DNA, they're nonetheless very different animals--and so it is with manga and anime in Japanese and Hollywood animation, movies, and television. Though they share some key common elements, they developed mostly separately while still influencing each other significantly along the way. That confluence is now accelerating into new forms of hybridization that will drive much of future storytelling entertainment. Packed with original interviews with top creators in these fields and illuminating case studies, Manga and Anime Go to Hollywood helps to parse out these these shared and diverging genetic codes, revealing the cross-influences and independent traits of Japanese and American animation.In addition, Manga and Anime Go to Hollywood shows how to use this knowledge creatively to shape the future of global narrative storytelling, including through the educational system. Northrop Davis paints a fascinating picture of the interrelated history of Japanese manga/anime and Hollywood since the Meiji period through to World War II and up to the present day -- and even to into the future.
ISBN: 9781623562489
Publication Date: 2016-03-24